Richard H. Collins subscribes to the philosophy that those who benefit greatly from their community have a responsibility to make it greater.
To that end, he manages the following philanthropic foundations that fund several initiatives whose goals help improve the quality of life for all Americans.
![BayouBend](http://www.richardhcollins.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/BayouBend-Houston.jpg)
![Today_Logo_Web](http://www.richardhcollins.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/TF-Logo.png)
Founded in 1984, The Today Foundation is a public foundation that has awarded over $8 million in scholarships to more than 8,000 children in grades K-8 in Dallas County to attend the school of their choice. The Today Foundation’s multiple programs are aimed at:
- Improving education
- Boosting reading skills
- Building character
- Reducing crime
- Preventing drug use
- Using technology to better education
- Supporting the Collins Academy in Jefferson, Texas
- Advocating tax reform
- Exploring economic issues
In addition, the Calvert Collins Family Foundation — founded by Carr P. Collins in 1962 — is private foundation that:
- Works in conjunction with Southern Methodist University’s Simmons School of Education and Human Development to develop effective scientifically based reading research and easy to use assessments.
- Makes grants to educational organizations
- Owns and manages The House of the Seasons, a historic, 1872 home in Jefferson, Texas.
- We teach children and adults about historic preservation, archaeology, conservation, and local culture with the House of the Seasons and other partners in Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Oklahoma.
- The foundation funded the Carr P Collins Chair of Finance, the Collins Scholars & the Collins Outstanding Professor Award all at Baylor. The Foundation also created the Carr P. Collins Jr Chair of Management Science at SMU.
The Collins Academy:
- Provides honor courses for area students and diplomas for high school dropouts.
- The Collins Academy partnered with the City of Jefferson to develop the Port Jefferson History & Nature center. The center is a sculpture garden located at the site of the historic Turning Basin & has a series of trails wandering through the local habitat with the famous 1907 railroad bridge as the featured historic structure at the site.